The next morning, after a visit to Washington, things should have returned to normal for Marcus.
It was normal, at least at the human level, but the country that gave birth to the Inventor is experiencing flooding.
Requests for long-term visas have flooded.
"That makes 21 thousand!"
"Yeah, I counted 41 billionaires, 58 actors, and other important-looking people," a woman said with a sigh.
"I'm surprised that you know who is who."
"I Watch TV." She immediately defended herself.
"Pretty sure everyone here watches TV in one shape or form." Other girl said with an eye roll.
"I bet she watches those California-related TV shows."
The girl blushed when she heard the tease, and they were right that she watched that stuff religiously.
But then they stopped talking as their boss entered with a pale look.
"Boss, are you okay?"
"Just had a meeting with Ministers. We are to streamline some of the admissions."
"...But won't that piss HIM off? I saw the space gun is quite close to the atmosphere."
One of the supervising girls said with a frown. While she doesn't care about what is happening on the other side of the pond, she is worried about accepting this many immigrants.
"I know, and the government is negotiating. I understand that people will spend money to enter the borders."
"Isn't it pointless? Marcus Goldman will eventually take over. Money will be useless." The other girl said with a confused look.
"That is in the future. We still need to live now. Besides, most of these rich people have talents."
"...Fine, I suppose."
"Yes, now return to your things. I still need to attend a few other meetings. It's becoming a pain in the butt." He complained before walking away.
Just because Marcus is ending the society in four years, it doesn't mean stuff like discussing visa applications from Chinese people will cease.
~~~
Marcus slowly opened his eyes as he saw white hair. The next second, he recalled pulling Sirin into his bed as a hug pillow.
It was worth it as the sleep was good. The inventor felt that he got over the previous night's nonsense.
"My Queen~ ready to wake up?" He teased her the very first thing in the morning.
"...Hmm~ maybe~" She slowly turned and looked at Marcus.
"We can have a shower together~"
His suggestion got her blushing.
"...Maybe not. It's one thing doing it aboard your ship and another in your house with this many people." She explained with a blush.
"True… but we can still snuggle~" The inventor pulled her closer and started to kiss her. The Herrscher rolled her eyes but accepted the morning kiss, which lasted for a while.
With that done, they got up. Sirin went to get a shower while Marcus dressed up and went downstairs. He was followed by the orange cat and his pet lion.
The inventor jokingly decided to call the orange cat Garfield.
He even considered overwriting some memories and behaviour patterns to reflect Garfield. But for that, he needs to ask Sirin, as he gave the cat to her after all.
As he ended up at the breakfast table, Quinella quickly walked over and fixed his hair, which made him roll his eyes. Well, it's one of the reasons he has a selection of beauties. They can solve all those small details.
"Dear, you can skip today if you want. After what they did to you should take it easy." His mother, Rose, quite seriously told him.
"Nah, I am fine. I recharged my batteries after hugging Sirin for the whole night." He explained to her.
"Oh, remember, I am too young to be a grandmother~" She teased her son.
Marcus snorted while hearing that.
"Don't worry, stuff like that will only happen when it's properly organised; I dislike things which are out of control," Marcus mentioned the last part with an annoyed frown as he thought about how to respond to the American move.
But then he saw TV in the background.
He raised his eyebrow and increased the volume with his psionic interface.
[Currently, we have no idea who caused the attacks on several diplomats and high-ranking officers. We are not ruling out the fact that it could be a terrorist act.]
"Oh my, it would seem that terrorism is quite bad in America," Rose said with a faked concern. Which Marcus thought was strange. Well, this stuff is on the other side of the pond.
"Yes. It sucks to be them. Anyway, I am going today as I have some things to do."
Marcus recalled that he needed to finish designing the thrusters for the spaceships and start working on faster-than-light engines, too.
If he were sticking around his house, he would be distracted by various beauties. So school is better at this moment. Besides, he still has to work on his baby, so there is no time to stick around like a hikikomori.
"All right ~ here is your breakfast" His mother brought over pancakes, which made Marcus' eyes sparkle for a second. That's better than the regular sandwiches he gets.
A couple of minutes later, Sirin descended the stairs, and the inventor ended up placing her on his lap.
The girl had barely any time to react as he used his powers.
"..."
The surprise lasted for a second before she understood what happened. She didn't even react like she usually does.
The white-haired girl had already adjusted to his sudden actions.
"Oh, it's pancakes~" Sirin was happy with this too. She took the fork and started to eat.
It was Marcus plate…
The inventor realised what was happening and used his psionic powers to take Sirin's plate and place it beside his.
He took one pancake from it and decided to eat but got an idea midway.
His idea made Quinella and Gu Yuena have twitching eyebrows.
The pair were certain they did naughty stuff while going to the USA!
'That girl! She's quite a scheming one, isn't she?' The assistant wondered what defensive measures she could take against such a vixen.
While Gu Yuena pouted as she realised, she was left in the dust. This Herrscher did it quicker than her.
Marcus started to feed the white-haired girl to answer that Sirin also started to feed him. It was not because of some sort of romantic thing for the girl but more like getting back at him.
~~~~~~Meanwhile, in Japan~~~~~~
Just outside of Tokyo, on a mountain full of buildings that look like restaurants of different cultures, This place was a famous school dedicated to teaching world-class chiefs.
This school was called Totsuki Academy, run by the world-famous Nakiri family. Well, the mundane side of the Nakiri family. It's a very old family that has been going back hundreds of years.
The supernatural side of this family has its own set of arts and so forth and follows a very strict set of rules.
Unlike the mundane side of the Nakiri family, which focuses on the art of food making, such art requires one to travel the world quite a bit.
So when Marcus declared Doomsday at Congress, the family already started working on survival.
"You called me grandfather?" A honey-blond girl with purple eyes enquired as she entered her grandfather's office.
"Yes. I just returned from a meeting held in National Diet." He replied while looking through the window at the mountain in the distance.
"I assume it's related to that live footage held in Congress?" She realised the only reason he had called her was that live footage. She still finds it hard to believe someone like that teenager could exist.
"It is. We don't have many choices here, Erina." He sighed as he turned around and looked at his granddaughter.
"We are good at making food. That's all we do. We perfected this art for generations and built this school and dynasty. Whatever Marcus Goldman will do will shatter the civilisation. We survived World War 2. I am sure we can survive this as well. The question is if you are ready to do your part."
There was sweat on her forehead as she listened patiently to his words. Her whole life, she has been doing one thing: cooking. There are no other things she could do.
"Grandfather, I understand. But what can I do?"
"Cook, of course. We shall start moving towards Eastern Europe just like everyone else."
The moment she heard about cooking, a part of her relaxed. She might have won all her food duels, but this is a life-and-death situation. The moment he doesn't like her food, he could nuke her home.
It doesn't help her relax.
"B-But… how will we even approach the cooking part?" Erina frowned. First, they needed to bring him to her kitchen even to consider cooking. And the guy, from what she has seen, is a hikikomori.
"That's where you will be coming in. I will transfer you to his school."
"..."
"..."
"...B-But…"
"Don't worry. We have prepared some of the translation talismans. Language won't even be an issue." Her Grandfather waved his hand in leisure. That won't be an issue.
"That's not an issue! It's a commoner school! I have no idea how to behave in such a place! Plus, won't it be obvious?" Erina started to panic!
"Don't worry. You are not the only one transferring. Many rich and influential people are moving there to survive the doomsday."
"...What will happen? Do people even know what he will do?"
"..."
He got quite serious when he heard the question.
"We don't have concrete evidence, but it could be an invasion from space the moment he builds his space forces. Others say he will fry all technology, returning us to the Stone Age.
None of those are good for us."
The honey-blonde girl gulped when she heard that. If the rumours of him dating a goddess are true, part of her thinks she is the sacrifice for the so-called Demon Lord or Demon God.
'I won't be high on the radar even when I transfer to that school.'
"It will become better the moment he can eat your food." He smiled at her while saying that.
"We have no idea what kind of things he is eating. He created a Technological Empire. He could have a sophisticated food creation already." She reasoned, sounding quite pessimistic.
"Then we are doomed, Erina."
Her eyes widened as she swiftly tried to lighten the mood somehow!
"I mean, we don't know! I saw the videos about his kitchen. It looks quite automated. The food could have tasted like it was from a cheap supermarket! I could have a chance!"
"Good, then I am sending the papers for your transferring."
"...yes. But Hisako has to come with me."
"...of course. She is your assistant." Her grandfather agreed with her request.
"Good, then excuse me; I need to prepare." Erina turned around and started to walk towards the doors, her steps a bit wobbly.
Before she could leave, her grandfather said a few more things.
"This is the only way. I wouldn't be doing this if we had an alternative.
If we move to his country, we will have no idea what will happen to the food industry. Simply living is worse than being dead.
I hope you understand that." He said this with a pained voice.
Erina slowly nodded. She knew that if they were going to get reduced to eating protein bars, is worse than death.
After leaving the Headmaster's office, the old man sighed and looked back at the distant mountain. He wonders what the future has in store for them.
If they are successful, will they have restaurants on Moon? Venus or Mars? Now that is interesting.
"This is quite a gamble. On one side, it's death. On the other side, there is space and a limitless future." The old man said to himself as he was both intrigued and terrified.
~~~
"My Lady, how was the meeting." A girl with short pink haired girl asked Erina.
Instead of saying anything, Erina offered her hand.
The girl, with confusion, took it. She could feel how much it was shaking the moment she touched it.
"...That's how I am feeling." The honey blond girl clarified.
"...What happened?"
"We are going to Europe to get sacrificed to the Demon King."
"!?"
"No, I haven't been reading Shojo recently. What I am saying is that we are going to seduce Marcus Goldman." Erina clarified with a strained smile. She sounded sarcastic even.
"HAH!?" Hisako almost passed out when she heard that!
Erina knows well enough. Her knowledge acquired from Shojo Mangas tells her that she won't have a chance to escape if she attracts the attention of the big bad guy. She will be doomed to be his. That is if she can even get his attention. The females of his creation surround the guy.
'As ridiculous as this sounds, my odds are very low.'
~~~~~~Marcus~~~~~~
Feeling jealous, Quinella decided to hog Marcus's attention in school. The moment the bell rang that it was break time, the beauty sneaked onto Marcus's lap and proceeded to cuddle.
Her behaviour was something the inventor swiftly adjusted and continued to draw the internal parts of the thruster.
As he did that, the assistant checked the fallout of the last day's 'adventure'.
"It would seem the world is treating our little country as Noah's Ark 2.0." The beauty checked the number of people who requested a long-stay visa.
"No surprise there."
"Over 25 thousand and going up. All of these people are successful and ambitious." Quinella frowned. She felt that they were collecting all the vipers.
"Don't you think we should do something?" she asked him, placing her head on his shoulder.
"No need. People like those will continuously try to find ways to improve their positions.
But they are late. The government and my faction hold an iron grip on these lands.
The only way for them to improve their standings in some valuable way is to approach me directly." Marcus explained to her as one of his hands stroked Quinella's hair.
"So you ARE waiting for someone to approach you!" The assistant realised what was happening.
"It's not my original intention, but I am curious to know what they are planning and what method they will use to approach me."
He wonders if people will bring some old cars or maybe some tuned-up cars or give him a game studio—who knows? He doesn't mind stuff like that.
He can make cars and games himself, but if he does, there won't be the mystery of the unknown.
"Heh, now I am interested. Let's see what desperate humans can do. People perform at their best when they are in danger."
"...I don't want to interrupt your evil mastermind talk, but the Principal wants to see you." Victor, his classmate, said with a strained smile as he walked over to the Inventor's table.
"Oh? He caved in. It's about time." Marcus closed his notebook and motioned for his girl to stand up.
Once the pair were on their feet, they walked towards the doors.
"So, did you guys get anything in Congress, any sort of souvenirs?" Victor asked Gu Yuena and Sirin, who didn't walk after Marcus. Behind them was Enterprise and Tirpitz, who were playing battleships.
Those two were in a world of their own.
"Hmm? Oh, I did get something." Space rippled next to Dragoness as a box dropped out.
The teens ignored that little thing. By this point, they didn't care anymore. It's like in the military: You get phased by gunshots and tanks and stuff, but after a couple of days, you get used to it.
This was the same. They see at least a couple of airships with Starscream jet fighters pass daily. At first, they get spooked, then annoyed, and lastly, they don't care anymore.
The most important part is that these things barely make any sort of sound when they pass through a city.
As Victor thought about his strange life, Gu Yuena opened the box and showed the content. It was a box full of blue pens with eagles on them.
"Did you steal the whole box full of pens?" Sirin stopped reading manga and looked at the dragoness.
"What? I am a dragon. Of course, I hoard." The silver-haired beauty didn't even hide the fact that she had taken a whole box of pens from the Congress building.
As she said that, she noticed that everyone looked at her as if she had done something weird.
"Fine, fine. You can have one if you want." With a sigh, she started handing out the pens. Sirin snorted, seeing how self-conscious the dragoness suddenly became.
Sure enough, the whole class soon had fancy pens from Congress.
~~~
"There you are." Principal sighed when he saw the Inventor.
"So, do I get permission to Improve the school?" Solomon's Successor immediately went for the main dish.
"Yes, yes. The Minister of Education threatened to fire me for treason if I didn't agree." The old man massaged his forehead. He tried to maintain some sense of normalcy in this place, but the world was going crazy.
"Treason? Isn't that jail time for life?" Marcus was a little bit surprised to hear that. But his country is becoming crazy just because he is living here. How amusing is that?
"Yes. Now, do you see this?" He showed a pile of papers on the table.
"These are people who are transferring to the school," the old man said, waving the papers at Marcus.
"The Minister said to accept your proposal for renovation, and on top of that, you can do whatever you want with the school as long as you add capacity to the number of students who can attend it."
The inventor's eyes sparkled when he heard that.
It seems people know how to use the Inventor for their needs. But this is a double-edged sword, as the school will become 'his'. The place will be full of cameras and other things that track people. Not that people have realised this yet. No doubt, this will be noticed eventually.
But this is perfect for studying horny teenagers. Marcus has not mastered how to synthesise these types of memories. After all, the hormonal period is important in a person's development.
"Sounds good enough."
"Good. Then what do we need to do?" The principal enquired where they were going to start.
"Nothing. I will do those over the night. Tomorrow, we can return to the classes." Marcus motioned for Quinella to come over.
The assistant knew why Marcus needed her. The girl summoned her interface. The inventor went through a few things before explaining and showing what he would do.
"I will send down my bots. They will install the technology throughout the buildings. Of course, we should improve the gym, the basketball court, and the pool." Marcus showed some of the early stuff he had drawn for this place when he talked about it with his physics teacher.
But then he got rejected; however, he kept those designs. The reason? Because he will improve the place either way. He is being civil now, but he doesn't need it. Threatening a doomsday has a ripple effect on his place.
'I suppose getting emotionally 'dissected' like this has its perks.' Marcus randomly thought to himself as he looked at the man's expression.
"Good. Do whatever you want. I will see how it goes tomorrow and whether I should retire or keep my job."
'Translation: If it's not as crazy as I thought, I keep working. If it is crazy, I will retire.' That's how Marcus saw it. Well, now he knows how to get rid of this geezer.
"Alright. I will keep that in mind." The inventor nodded as he agreed to the Principal's words.
"Good, then you can return to class. I did my part."
With another nod, the pair left the office.
As Quinella and Marcus walked back, the beauty decided to comment on the old man's attitude.
"For someone who grasps your authority, this man is quite arrogant. Is this how old men behave?" His assistant enquired as she had a frown. She is annoyed at this principal for his arrogance.
"These kinds of people grew up with communism. They had strict rules when they were growing up. So what came out of this is that they believe that with age comes authority, as they believe that now it's their turn to raise the next generation."
"I see. So they think they know the best and should be listened to." She snorted when she heard that.
"I suppose. I ignore my mother's occasional moments, but his?" He smirked while saying that." I will go wild."
Marcus pulled out his phone and messaged Latia so that she could tell Seekvaira to send her energy and magic for Aurora to analyse.
It was time to raid time and get some 'proper' teachers.
Napoleon and Alexander the Great for P.E., Einstein for physics, and some Greek philosophers for ethics. That's just from the top of his head. Once he starts collecting, he needs a proper list.
"Let's go, Quinella. I am getting excited about this." With a growing smirk, Marcus returned to the classes. It was time to revisit the notes he had left on time.
~~~~~~Serafall~~~~~~
'This is far too easy.' The last remaining Satan frowned for a second as she noticed that Sunrise easily accepted her desire to purchase the whole thing.
There were no negotiations or anything of that sort. She offered the price, and they just took it.
'That's not how this is supposed to work.'
The obvious reason is Marcus, but they would approach her if they wanted something.
Sure enough, they did. In the meeting room at Sunrise HQ, Serafall felt a huge amount of Divine Energy. It was scorching hot, like the sun.
Serafall immediately knew who it was.
It would seem she won't be signing documents with the CEO but with the Head Goddess of a Pantheon.
"I apologise for wasting your time." a woman said to Serafall as she opened the doors and revealed herself.
"Lady Amaterasu, it's an honour." Serafall swiftly bowed, and Roygun behind her did the same thing. They never thought their 'fishing expedition' for mundane fish would lead to 'catching' a whale.
"Relax, I do have your papers." As the Goddess said, she walked over and showed a stack of documents. These were the legal ownership of the company.
"I assume you wish to talk about the event four years from now?" The Leviathan realised that there was only one thing Amaterasu would care about at this moment.
"Correct. Now, do tell me what you know about it?" She sat down at the opposite side of the table and looked at Serafall with a neutral expression.
"...*Sigh*..."
She sat down in her chair, crossed her arms, and closed her eyes. Serafall needed to collect her thoughts about this.
"The project is called Project Eden. It would follow the Underworld's example. The remaining devils live on a small continent. The remaining is Technocracy's land."
"Fallen don't exist anymore?" Amaterasu was surprised by this. It would seem the Underworld was devastated by this war. She barely knows what is happening there.
No information is spreading about what happened afterwards. This is the first time that someone is talking about the war.
"They live in Master's town. Azazel is trying to curry favour to join Technocracy full-time."
"And you can talk about this? Wouldn't you get into a problem?" Amaterasu asked why Serafall revealed everything so easily.
"Ars Goetia would force me to stop when it's classified. But as you can see, none of this is classified. I think it is Master's sadism. He is saying: 'Even if you know what you will do about it'?"
"...I see… it does make sense when you explain like that. It would seem we got too rusty. Allowing such being to gain this much power."
The black-haired goddess sighed in resignation. It was never supposed to be her job in the first place. Shinto is a Japanese religion. It was supposed to be the job of Norse and Greek Gods as Marcus interacted with them. But in the end, they joined forces, or more like Marcus swept them, forcing them to join him.
"Hehe, I am at fault for this as well. I might get too attached to him in his younger days. I was his second devil." Serafall sheepishly smiled.
"I see. Well, it is already in the past. I would like to know if you could arrange a meeting between me and him."
Amaterasu wasn't angry by this discovery; instead, she asked if she could arrange a meeting. In the end, the only way to get out of this mess is to discuss it with the source.
"I could try. But I have no idea if he finds this interesting enough. After all, most likely, many people wish to talk to him after that broadcast."
"I know this well enough. Tell him that I will make it worth his time." After saying that, she pushed the papers into Serafall's side before standing up and disappearing from the room in a burst of flames.
"...Did she…"
"Yes. Even the Goddess of Sun is thinking of sacrificing herself," Serafall replied with a strained smile. It would seem that even such a goddess was thinking of seducing him. The world was turning on its head.
Regardless, Serafall took the papers and inspected them. Her eyebrows went up.
Amaterasu has gifted Marcus Sunrise AND Konami!
"...Damn these Gods!"
For a second, the temperature dropped in the room to freezing levels.
"...She got one on me!"
The current Leviathan immediately started to bite her nails as she began to think of alternatives.
Sunrise was for Gundam, and Konami was for Yu-gi-oh. But what else could she get?
Shonen jump?
"...Possible." Serafall stood up as she looked at Roygun.
"Let's go meet Master. I need to tell him about Amaterasu. After that, we will return to Japan. I have an idea for plan B."
The black-haired devil stormed out of the office. Her second in command could only show a strained smile. This is why one should not underestimate a God when he or she is on a mission.
~~~~~~Meanwhile~~~~~~
In a garage in his father's place, the Inventor is surrounded by holograms.
Seekvaira did what Marcus requested, and Solomon's successor was tinkering and putting together a working time machine.
"I have heard from the principal that he is giving you free rein to tinker around the school. What does time travel have to do with anything?" Athena asked her future husband as she saw what he was doing.
The Goddess arrived to see him the moment she heard the news. She needs to make sure he doesn't go overboard, as she doesn't want him to traumatise those children.
"I am finishing one of the projects which was on hold because of the war. Now I am nearly done."
"I see. Is it not related to the fact that you are upgrading the school?"
"It is, actually. I think I will spread the radius of another project."
Athena had a feeling he was planning something scary.
"...And that is?"
"Collecting talented individuals."
Her eyes widened for a second. Before this, the only weakness his faction had was a lack of commanders and generals.
But if he is building a time machine…
'Then he is planning to collect talent from throughout human history!'
"...W-Wait! You can't just take all those people through history! It would cause the collapse of the current timeline!"
"Don't be ridiculous. Why would I kidnap them? The way they are, they are useless to me.
All I want is DNA and their memories." He smirked when he replied to her.
His response only made her tremble even more!
What he plans is even worse…
Just imagining thousands upon thousands of Conquerors like Genghis Khan, Attila the Hun, or Alexander The Great makes her legs go weak.
"So you realised. I will be able to study not only their tactics from a distance but also from inside. So far, we were able only to simulate what they could potentially think at specific moments.
However, with DNA samples and real memories, those qualities will skyrocket.
I will be able to use generals depending on the circumstances. I can even create an artificial general who is even more powerful after he faces these historic beings in fights."
Marcus pondered as he continued to tinker with the time machine's schematics. Seekvaira's energy readings confirmed some of the clues he had related to time travel.
Now that he knows the details, which are based on a river concept, he can start working on the real thing.
"You don't waste time." She relented after showing a strained smile. If he is that deep in this rabbit hole, there is no way for her to pull him out.
But then a familiar voice got their attention.
"Master! I got something for you~"
Marcus and Athena looked at the source. Serafall was walking towards them, waving documents in her hands.
"Sera? What are those?" The Inventor asked with a curious look. For a moment, he stopped with his work.
"These are things Amaterasu gifted to you."
One of his eyebrows went up. What does that goddess have to do with him? He doesn't remember talking or even seeing her.
Regardless, he took the papers and started reading.
"..."
"..."
"..."
"...she has my attention." Marcus had a huge smile when he saw that he was the legal owner of Sunrise and Konami.
Holy fucking Hell.
"Yes, she said that she would like to talk with you about events that will happen four years from now," Serafall said in a serious tone.
"Since you didn't block me, I could tell her a few things about Project Eden."
Marcus shrugged when he heard the last part.
"There is no need to hide something which everyone knows either way. The world has been studying me for weeks. They probably know me better than I know myself."
~~~
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